Welcome back to part two of my travel-inspiring literature suggestions. I am going to cheat a little bit today and review a couple of collections, not just individual books. That’s because there’s just so much good stuff out there! Sometimes when an author has been very busy, and everything they craft is good, it can be hard to narrow down the choices. What a nice problem to have.
Anything by Maeve Binchy
Maeve Binchy was an Irish writer who passed away in 2012. She was extremely prolific and there are tons of choices. She published roughly 20 novels and several short story collections. Circle of Friends is probably her most famous novel, just because it was made into a movie with Minnie Driver. However, there are also excellent novels like: The Lilac Bus, The Silver Wedding, The Copper Beech, Evening Class, and Tara Road.
I could go on and on, but here is what you need to know. Her books usually focus on a cast of characters who either live in Dublin or live in a small Irish town and travel to Dublin at some point. Each book introduces you to at least half a dozen neighbors and spins a tale of their intertwining lives. There are strands of different stories in the characters’ lives that all come together to a resolution at the end. The best part is that the characters (and businesses, restaurants, catering companies, etc.) often carry over from book to book. So, by the time you have completed your second book, you already feel like you know this town and these people. They are your neighbors. This is your town.
These books will make you want to hop on a plane and head to both Dublin and any small town in Ireland that you can find. Personally, I have been to Dublin and Ennis, Ireland (population 25,000). I selected Ennis because I had limited time and I wanted to see one small town in addition to a city. Ennis hosts an annual traditional Irish music festival. We were able to catch the last day of the festival. Strolling the 17th Century streets of Ennis, attending a ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee, meaning community dance) and having a drink in a pub will bring a Maeve Binchy book to life in no time!
The Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon
OK, I know there has been a lot written and said about this series, but I need to pile on the bandwagon here. I just finished reading the 8th book in the series. No, they are not bodice-rippers. Yes, they are well-written. Yes, they are well-researched (understatement of the decade). I really wish that I had read at least the first volume before my trip to Scotland. The most important thing I took away from that book was a clear understanding of why the Battle of Culloden in 1746 is so sacred to the Scots. In a nutshell, after that battle, the English outlawed the Gaelic language, kilts, tartans, clans and the entire clan way of life. Before reading this series, I had no knowledge of this culture and now, I have at least a preliminary understanding of the culture and I feel the heartache of what it must have been like to lose your culture through forced assimilation. I look forward to travelling to Scotland again someday now that I have read this series.
Later books in the series delve into the American Revolution. Most of us learned the basic Paul Revere, Battles of Lexington and Concord stuff in American History class. The books in this series that deal with the American Revolution talk about what it was like in other colonies (beyond Massachusetts) at this time. They also talk about the contributions of various immigrant groups to the revolutionary cause. It is an interesting reminder that back then, everyone in the colonies was an immigrant from somewhere.
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
This novel begins in an Italian seaside village in the 1950s and finishes in modern day America. A young man falls in love with an American actress who is filming in Italy. They have an emotional connection but cannot acknowledge their feelings because she is in a relationship with a famous American actor. Drama ensues and the book skips 50 years. This significant summer in the protagonist’s life is revisited when he is an old man. The emotional content of this book is powerful and will have you reading with your mouth hanging open. However, for travelers, it is the descriptions of the village built on a mountain clinging to the cliff face for dear life that will make you sigh longingly for the Italian coast. I have seen villages stacked upon themselves like Lego blocks on mountainsides in Italy, Austria, Croatia and more. These mountain towns may be less sun-drenched than the Mediterranean in the book, but the awe that you feel is the same. Whether you approach these villages but winding lane or by small boat, the time machine portal works the same way. You are introduced to a simpler way of life. Fishermen pull nets or maybe sheep herders call flocks. No one in these places gives a flying fig who posted something on Instagram or who tweeted what. Now, that’s a vacation!
I am sure there are dozens of books that I am forgetting, but this will get you started. Do you have suggestions for me of books that inspire wanderlust that I should add to my list?
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